Endless Waltz
by bittersweet irony
Summary: IchigoXRukia When Ichigo admits his feelings towards Rukia, his powers grow and change. However, will it be enough to keep the one he loves by his side? first fanfic
1. disclaimer

Disclaimer

I don't own Bleach, or any of the associated characters. I hereby swear that this material is created for my loving fans who are as equally obsessed by Bleach as I am. This work is totally original, and was not designed for copyright infringement.

Thank you

Bittersweet Irony


	2. prologue

"

"_..!" Gasping for air, Ichigo collapses on the cold, wet pavement. Out of his mouth comes an inhumane cry, heartwrenching. It's a primal cry for the loss of love, a plea for the agony to end. The heavens, unrelentless and cold, continue to pour a torrent of water amongst them. Ichigo, was glad for the rainwater running down his face, so his nakama could not see him cry, he hasn't cried since his mother died. Ishida places his hand on Ichigo's shoulder and says, "She's gone. Here reiatsu is gone from this world." As Ishida's words crash into Ichigo, he faints. Like a broken record player, his mind replays over and over, "I loved you. Now you're gone." _

**First fanfic reviews accepted, constructive criticism also accepted, no flames please?**

**Actual Story To Come.**

**-**bittersweet irony


	3. The Begining

One Month Ago

"Riiiiinnnggggg."

Rukia woke up with a start, looking for the source of the sound. Ichigo's alarm clock was ringing, almost as brightly as the sunny morning itself. Sun rays peeking through the blinds, birds chirping, it was a picture perfect morning. Stretching, she yawned and looked at the slumbering strawberry-head lying next to her. Ever since the return from Hueco Mundo, Ichigo insisted on sleeping within an arm's reach of her. Rukia, who played it tough, continued to sleep in Ichigo's closet. Each morning, she would find one Ichigo, sitting inside the closet with dark bags under his eyes, staring at her. Rukia would scream at him for not taking care of himself, and wonder why he was making such a big deal out of such a little thing. The next day…

"What's with you, Ichigo? You weren't like this before. Why are you being so… stubborn?!" Rukia was shouting at the top of her lungs. "It's like your school desk became your bed. Can't you just go to sleep like normal humans do?"

"What do you mean? I'm not being stubborn. You're the stubborn one, midget." Ichigo scoffed. "Its not like you care about anything I do anyway." This last statement was said in an undertone, with a hint of bitterness.

"What did you call me?!" Apparently, she didn't hear this statement.

"You heard me. Unless you're so short that the sound doesn't reach that low to the ground?"

"You're the one to talk, huh? At least I don't look like a deformed walking carrot."

The jesting continued for several minutes until..

**:HollowHollow:HollowHollow:**

Simultaneously, they change into their shingami forms and rushed out of the house.

"Don't think this is over, Rukia."

"Didn't even cross my mind.

"Well, try to keep up then", Ichigo glanced at her with a challenging look, as he activated shunpo and dashed towards the hollow.

"…" Rukia suddenly stopped in her steps, and her eyes glazed over.

"…Ichigo…"

Lost in her thoughts, she just stood in place until she sensed an enormous spike in Ichigo's reiatsu.

"Ban Kai? Why would he have to use it?" Now worried, she dashed towards the strawberry-head who had a bad habit of getting into trouble.

**I know, its kinda short, but im still working on it. reviews **


	4. Split Soul, Double Personality

Split Soul, Double Personality

As Rukia arrives at the scene, she stifles a scream. The hollow was long gone, but the sight that scared her was Ichigo. Bloody, beaten, and holding his Zanpakutou in Bankai mode, trying to rip his hollow's mask off. Whenever Ichigo raised his arm to try and rip it off, it was almost as if an invisible force pushed his arm back down. Ichigo/Hollow Ichigo glanced at Rukia. The unmistakable glint in those eyes sent chills down Rukia's spine. It was his hollow, the one he was supposed to have suppressed and controlled before Hueco Mundo.

"Oh, so there you are, Rukia" came a slow drawling voice out of Ichigo's mouth. "I was wondering when you would come and save King."

'This isn't him,' she thought. 'This isn't the cocky strawberry that makes me sleep in his closet, this isn't my best friend. Where is he and who is this bastard who thinks he can talk to me in that familiar tone?'

"What's with that revolted face, Rukia? Isn't this your nakama?" The Hollow spat out the last word like a bad taste in his mouth.

"He is! But you're just a parasite in his body!" Rukia retorted. "You would be nothing without him, Hollow."

"Really? Well. He's gonna owe me a lot for what I'm about to tell you. That pathetic _Shingami_, has the courage to attack Soul Society by himself, but he can't even tell you how he feels about you."

"You're lying. Ichigo tells me everything that's on his mind. What can't he tell me?"

"Hmm… what if it's a deep, dark secret that he's afraid would impair your friendship?"

"Impair? Didn't know Ichigo had a brain." She draws her Zanpakutou, and says, "And he told me about you, what else could be worse than that?"

The Hollow growls, and uses shunpo to rush forward, knocks Rukia's blade from her hands, and pins her against the alley's walls. Rukia gasps, and curses her carelessness. 'I forgot how fast he could move with Ban Kai. Fuck!'

"Ichigo's gonna owe me for this," Hollow Ichigo growled. His mask crumbles away from his face. For a fleeting moment, Rukia thought Ichigo had returned, but the evil glint in his eyes told her differently.

"He's gonna kill me for beating him to it," the Hollow muttered, almost to himself. As he leaned forward, Rukia cried out, "ICHIGO!"

Ichigo collapsed into Rukia's arms. What she didn't know was as she dragged him home, was that Ichigo's mind was the home to a battlefield, between the two halves of Ichigo's soul.


	5. Ban Kai Evolved, Shared Royalty

Ban Kai Evolved, Shared Royalty

As the rain poured on the world of skyscrapers, only two beings stood out in the torrent.

"King! Why did you stop me? You know that you wanted it too, or did you?" Hollow Ichigo smirked.

"Shut up! She doesn't think of me that way anyway! I wasn't about to let you wreak our friendship."

"And ya know what King?! I'm fucking tired of all this fucking rain! Can't you just let it clear it up a bit?!" Truth to be told, it has been raining for a long time in this world. The tears Ichigo withholds on the outside just pour down inside. The secret Hollow Ichigo was referring to was Ichigo's love for the midget Shingami that lived in his closet. Rukia meant the world to him, and to think that…

"Besides, Hollow! You were in control of my body, so it wasn't me that was going to…" With that, Ichigo broke off with a blush. Shre he wanted to hold the shorty against a wall and kiss her but… 'Damn hormones,' he cursed internally. "You were gonna use my body to get her. She wouldn't want you."

"Oh, but if she kissed me back, then wouldn't that mean she likes _me_?" the Hollow drawled. "I could imagine how good she would be in b-" Before the Hollow could finish his perverted sentence, Ichigo roars and dashes forward, nearly eviscerating the Hollow's head from his shoulders, had he not jumped out of the way first.

"Finally King! Another fight. I missed… kicking your sorry ass around!" The Hollow activates Ban Kai, and lunges at Ichigo. As the two narrow blades of opposite colors smash into one another, blue bolts of lightning streak around the darkened whirlpool of clouds. Ichigo wanted nothing more than to destroy the beast that continued to ruin his life. Hollow Ichigo whips around Ichigo's guard, and slices his shoulder. "What's the matter, King?! You're getting slow!" Ichigo spins around just in time to block the Hollow's slash towards his face. Suddenly, the world and its surroundings go white, and Isshin steps towards Ichigo.

"Dad? What are you doing here? And what's with the wardrobe?" Ichigo points at the black shingami robes that his father dons.

"Son, I'm a shingami, but that's not the reason I came to see you. Rukia-chan is worrying herself sick over you. You must wake up now!"

"I'll wake p when I beat this damn devil in my soul! He almost…"

"Kissed Rukia-chan. She told me. Ichigo, you can't eliminate him. He's part of your being too." Isshin sighs, as if remembering something long ago. "Just like yin-yang, everybody has tow sides to them. Now, you believed that you must kill him? I was just like that. However, you should embrace your darkness, and control it with your light. Ban Kai is just about communicating with the soul of your blade. Your true power however, lies within harnessing your sides. Only then, will your darkness be under your full control. Now, Ichigo, stop worrying my future daughter-in-law so much! I want grandchildren, and people who don't eat don't carry babies!" Isshin fades away, as Ichigo is once again thrust against the Hollow.

Now pressed with the concern of the health of Rukia, Ichigo fights on with a renewed vigor. Catching the hollow off guard, Ichigo slices the Hollow's left arm.

"You bastard! How did you suddenly get so much better? I'll kill you!" the Hollow hissed.

"You can't kill me… you ARE me, bastard. Now, I'm gonna take control, like the more responsible _partner_."

"You cant control me more than you can control your own reiatsu. I'd like to see you try!" The Hollow swings his blade with unmatched ferocity, giving Ichigo barely enough time to block each deadly blow from the narrow katana. "What now, King?!" Ichigo's Ban Kai deactivates from exhaustion, and he's thrown straight through a building. His sword lays upright next to his right arm. Hollow Ichigo lands in front of him, and points his blade at Ichigo's forehead.

"You lose. Now, where's my crown?"

"On top of my damn head!" Ichigo flips back, grabbing his enormous blade in the process. He pictures Rukia, all their memories and says one sentence before looking up.

"Love prevails above all."

The glare and the reiatsu flowing from Ichigo makes the Hollow shudder. As Rukia runs through his mind, only one thing goes through his mind.

'I love her.'

"Endless Waltz!" Ichigo shouts as the world goes white. The hollow smiles, a nearly sincere smile. "As long as he loves her, my hatred cannot prevail. One day though… I will be stronger than that…. Partner."


	6. Endless Waltz

Endless Waltz

Endless Waltz.

Ichigo's eyes snap open as he looks around. Everyone around him, his family, his nakama, and his love, all crushed to the floor by an invisible force. "What's wrong?!" he shouts as he rushes to Rukia.

"You're… awake…? Your reiatsu… so strong…"

Ichigo jumps off her and mutters "I'm sorry…" He pushes his reiatsu back down, and everyone staggers back to their feet. Looking confused, everyone stares curiously at Ichigo. The unasked question hung in the air, there was no need to ask. "I don't know what happened… but I have a feeling that something-" He was cut off as Rukia's cell began beeping continuously. "What happened?"

Rukia's eyes widen in shock. "Hollows. A lot of them. More than this town can take. Its enough to take on an army of shingami. What do we do? There's no time to call reinforcements from Soul Society. By the time the order gets authorized, it would take a full two hours before they arrive. What would happen to the-"

"They're not after the civilians. Its me that they're after. I don't know how much reiatsu I was releasing, but it must have attracted them. I gotta get outta the town, and lure them away. Ishida, Inoue, you guys try to stem them out from the rear. Chad, go back with Dad and try to protect the girls. Rukia, you and me are going to the forest and lure them in. Ready?" He smirks, as he shouts "GO!" Everyone rushes to their assigned tasks. Ichigo smiles at the kind of respect he gets now. Ever since he destroyed Azien, everyone's been actually treating his advice like an order. Rukia glances sideways at Ichigo.

"Ya know, that was actually a good idea" She smiles at him, in a way that causes butterflies to dance in his stomach. "I'm proud of you…" They approach a clearing in the woods. Almost immediately, two hollow jump out and attack Ichigo, with a killing intent. Ichigo swore, they were pretty fast. Whipping around his Zanpakutou, he pierces their masks with pinpoint accuracy. Being concerned for Rukia, Ichigo decides to handle everything by himself. This led to another argument.

"Why don't you want me to fight? Is it cus I can't use Ban Kai, that I'm inferior to you?"

"Of course not! I just wanted to.."

"Oh, don't even. You can't match my strength. My Zanpakutou is stronger than your Ban Kai will ever be ya know."

"I didn't mean it that way! I just… didn't want you to get hurt." At this, Rukia's expression softens. She didn't know that Ichigo cared for her that much. "Just… take care of yourself, okay?" He's practically whispering.

Ichigo uses shunpo to dash towards the next wave of incoming Hollows. Making short work of the Hollows, Ichigo dashes back to Rukia. "They just keep coming!" Rukia exclaims. She glances over at Ichigo, and is shocked at what she sees. Ichigo received several minor gashes, but what scared her the most was the look on his face. In place of his cocky grin, was a determined, scared look, loaded with concern. The speed of his shunpo left marks in the ground, and Rukia realized that she had neither moved a step nor attacked a Hollow. Ichigo was running circles around her, dispatching them.

"Shit." Ichigo mutters. "There's too many of them, and I'm running out of reiatsu. Damn!" Another wave of Hollows make their way towards Ichigo. He can barely lift his sword. "Not now! Ban Kai!" He glanced over his blade, frightened. Nothing had happened. "Come on.. old man.. don't do this.. Ban Kai!" Once again, nothing happened. "What the-"

As the world goes white once again, Ichigo hears a pair of voices, beautiful and harmonious.

"Hello, Ichigo," said a pair of women.

The two women in front of Ichigo were beautiful, but both had a deadly aura surrounding them. The one on the lift was a blonde with baby blue highlights, crystal blue eyes, piercing and calming. She wore a white qui pao, with baby blue daisy designs. On her hip was a blade, snowy white with blue curved lines running across the sides. She possessed an air of joy and serenity.

The woman on Ichigo's right however, was her polar opposite. Jet black hair, with crimson highlights falling to her shoulders, framed a sharp face and burning crimson eyes. Black qui pao, with crimson roses adorning it. Her blade, midnight black, identical to her partner's 5 foot long katana, had matching blood red curving lines running across the sides of the blade. Her aura, full of despair and hatred, gave Ichigo goosebumps. It was as if a negative film ran across between them. They were alike, yet so different at the same time.

"Who are you?" Ichigo demanded. "Where's old man Zangetsu?'

"Who gives a damn! Sexy ladies! Two! Man, I owe you, King." The Hollow shouts as he rushes towards the two five foot ladies, who were undoubtedly, beautiful.

SMASH. Ichigo watched the Hollow fly into the air, after getting punched simutaniously by the two said ladies. Ichigo sweatdrops. 'Damn. I better be careful.' He knew that this was his world, dominated by skyscrapers… He whirls around. 'Where the hell are those skyscrapers?' Around him was a beautiful scene. Green rolling plains, grassy hills, flowerbeds full of all types of flours, a beautiful pond covered by a pair of cherry blossom trees, and next to the lake, a quaint little log cabin. Ichigo could make out a forest in the distance. "Where the hell am I?" he whispers.

"You don't recognize this place? Zangetsu warned us that you were dense but.. man are you stupid," the brunette scoffed.

"This was the place with all those skyscrapers. Why were you so insecure? And what changed? Your whole world just changed. You can trust us!" the blonde said in a cute manner, giggling as she said the last part.

"Uhh.. Hey! Who are you two?" Ichigo shouted He was feeling rather uncomfortable, with two random strangers prying into his personal life.

"My name's Kirara, and my _talkative_ partner over there is Naome. We're your new sword souls!" the blonde twittered.

"You're.. what? Old man Zangetsu is my sword soul.. isn't he?" Ichigo looked bewildered.

"Punk, you're fucking retarded. The old man chose you cus you wanted to protect, even if you were alone in doing it. You were cold and heartless when he first met you. You had a conscience, but kept it lonely, didn't you?" Ichigo gave no response to the brunette.

"You fought as a berserker, mindlessly fighting. He thought you were like him. But now you've changed and.."

"Now you got us!" The blonde grabbed Ichigo's hand. "You're Kurosaki Ichigo, right?"

"Yeah that's me.. but there's gotta be a mistake somewhere. I haven't changed..."

"On the outside, maybe not. But on the inside, you've gotten warmer. You've developed feelings for a certain someone, haven't you? Didn't you realize that ever since you achknowledged your love, your entire being had changed. You weren't even half as protective of Rukia before." The blonde now had a serious face.

"Okay. So you guys are my new sword soul?" Ichigo looked bewildered.

"Souls. And yeah. You're retarded. I am your swordsman talent, blade powers of fire and darkness. I am your 'darker half.' Naome looked at Ichigo with a sideways glance. "Don't let me get bored."

"And I'm Kirara, kidou specialist, proficient at swordplay. I can help you control your reiatsu better, and assist you in developing your own kidou. Blade forged from ice and light. You will see me as your lighter half, and will most likely be present whenever you're happy."

"But what about my.." Ichigo began.

"Hugeass blade? Also replaced. Here." Naome throws Ichigo a double ended sword. Each blade was approximately two and a half feet, with a handle approximately a foot and a half. "Your blades don't appear until you pour reiatsu into it, so you don't kill yourself. This is its unreleased form by the way. But you gotta find out what it looks like released by yourself," Naome said. "Remember your fight with your Hollow.. We'll see you again after the battle." The world goes white once again and Ichigo wakes up on the ground.

"Ichigo! You alright?! You just collapsed, and your sword shattered. What happened?" Rukia sits over him, looking concerned.

"What happened? And where are the Hollows?"

"I don't know what happened, but this bubble just appeared from this stick, it looks a lot like Orihime's shield." Rukia passes him the black bar, and Ichigo instantly remembers everything that happened.

"Kirara?" He whispers to seeming nothing. Instantly, her voice echoes through the barrier.

"You must fight, Ichigo. To protect the one you love. I'm dropping the barrier now. Are you ready?

"Tch. Are you kidding me? I'm dying.. to kick their asses!"

"Good. Pour your reiatsu into the bar, release your blade." Ichigo forces the blades out, and the barrier drops. Instantly, two Hollows jump at Ichigo. He whips the blades around, slicing the two neatly in half. He's amazed at its speed and power, his old blade wasn't nearly as half as fast, and definitely took more strength to carry. His problem was however, the attacks from the air. Hollows who jumped high and dived at Ichigo weren't dispatched with such ease. The lack of length prevented Ichigo from piercing them before they reached striking distance, and in numbers, they dealt some damage against him. If he jumped to intercept, they would definitely attack Rukia, as she was also a shingami, and 'tasted' just as nice.

"Release the blade, Ichigo. Command us.. We will damce for you, if you require.." Naome said in a voice, sounding bored. "Remember how you defeated your Hollow?"

"Yeah, but what the hell should I expect?!" Getting no response from either, he decided to try it out. "Endless Waltz!" Little did he know that Rukia was staring at him, wondering what had transpired in his head.

--

i apologize for the slow updates, here in new york, we have finals and statewide 'regents' tests, so ive been swamped. as usual, i try to update asap, but lately ive been hitting some major writers block. reviews would be seriously appreciated, along with story ideas.

thanks, and waiting for some reviews,

_bittersweet irony_


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